


Back-up Girlfriend

by raine_grey15



Category: Shall We Date?: Wizardess Heart+
Genre: F/M, Klaus and MC broke up, M/M, Multi, Sarcasm, Swearing, and then my OC comes, but then i need klaus for this story so yeah sorry serge, elias and luca are totally gay and no one can change my mind, klaus and serge too, plenty of swearing actually, slow story build-up, some angst i warn you, this is my first fanfic lol, totally off-plot, will probably have a lot of chapters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2019-03-09
Packaged: 2019-10-01 01:18:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 12,469
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17234708
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/raine_grey15/pseuds/raine_grey15
Summary: "So, what's your backup plan?""I might need a girlfriend.""Pfft, doesn't everybody?"Klaus Goldstein hasn't gotten over his breakup with Liz from six years ago. Enter Sianus Taylors: sarcastic, misunderstood, two-faced, and a lot of "fun" to be with. Watch these two idio-- grown-ups realize the definition of love, heartbreaks, and replacements.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Everything here is purely a work of fiction, and there might be some mistakes in the real plot line of Wizardess Heart. Happy reading!

Ministry of Magic, 20XX

 

A blonde man in his mid-twenties could be seen huddled over a stack of papers on top of a wooden desk that had been there for as long as he had been. _I need tea_. He rummaged through the silverware and accidentally picked up a packet of tea by the side. He looked at it, eyebrows creasing, and myriads of emotions flashing past his violet orbs. He sighed, and picked up another one instead. The packet was thrown in the bin, facing up-side-down, so that the words _Assam tea_ could not be seen anymore.

He finished brewing and sat back down. He had long foregone the rites of putting seven -- or was it eight? -- cubes of sugar, his preference for sweets gone like a person he once had treasured so much. How long has it been? _Four years? Five?_ His eyes roamed his one-person office, which was a much better quality than the one when he was still a prefect in the academy. The room had a stifling feeling, quite overbearing in a sense, devoid of pictures, plants, decorations, or even tiny little trinkets, save for a tea set. It was actually just like any other office, the only uniqueness lying in the nameplate on his desk and a trophy case full of achievements and certificates he had accumulated all these years. The man snickered slightly. 

_What use were those trophies for when he couldn’t even get the girl he wanted?_

He remembers their first meeting, the white and imposing columns of the auditorium, a golden scale in the middle like an emperor deciding the fates of those below him, like the short girl with thin pigtails and a small, frail back. He blamed that scale for having such high standards, because maybe if it had just accepted her, then they wouldn’t have gotten into such trouble. He blamed the headmaster for not giving her a second chance, or even giving her a chance in the first place. Knowing how pathetic her magic was, giving her an Acceptance Letter was like giving him the chance to meet her and destroy his life entirely. He blamed a lot of people, and he blames himself. If only he was stubborn, and not the way he was, if only, then they could’ve been…

Three loud knocks interrupted his train of thoughts. He sighed once more and straightened his back.

“Come in,” he said.

The attendant who knocked shivered slightly. The Chief’s voice was exactly like a dragon who had just woken up pissed at the fool who dared to disturb him. Taking a deep breath, the rookie was about to open the door with what little courage he has left, when… 

“Get to the point. You’ve already wasted enough time standing there,” the man inside narrowed his eyes, a habit he had developed when he got irritated. The attendant no longer dilly-dallied and opened the door. Whatever it was that people told him hadn’t prepared him for this.

“S-Sir, Chief G-Goldstein, Senior Chief Goldstein t-told me to s-s-send this folder to y-you.”

“Put it in the table in front of you. Anything else?”

“N-no, sir.”

“Then get out.”

“Yes, sir!” The attendant seemed very much eager to shout those words, and indeed, he was relieved, for other than the person who he held dear, who could even make the Goldstein soften his voice? Not that he knew that the Goldstein was capable of softening his voice.

After the attendant left, Klaus Goldstein sighed again for the umpteenth time today. It had been five years since he’d graduated in the academy, and five years since he and Elizabeth Hart broke up. 

_Elizabeth Hart. Liz, as what everybody calls her. An orphan, five years younger than him, who failed the probational 13-day period that the academy gives to new students, because her magic was completely self-taught and just frankly, pathetic. After she left, it could be said that she barely made a ripple. By the first month, the signs were a little to none. She was slowly being forgotten, just like any other new student who had come before her. And as soon as new students came in, the whole academy moved on. Everyone did, except him._

_When she left, he had already fallen in love. And he took time from his last semester to visit her every weekend, just so he could see her, monitor her progress, and hope that one day the Acceptance Letter would visit her run-down house in a small village once more. Give her another chance, maybe? But they knew how impossible it was. Impossible that she’d be admitted to the academy again. And somehow, as he was about to graduate, how impossible they were. He couldn’t travel as often as every weekend, or he’d be risking his prefect position and his grades, which weren’t as stellar as they had been in years. The headmaster warned him that. His family did too. It was just… impossible._

_So when Liz finally mustered up the courage to tell him in a sweet, soft voice, “Klaus, I think we should break up.” He’d been furious at first, asking why, why would she want to let go, but he saw her tears rolling, and his heart broke. She told him she can’t anymore. He’s someone too high up in that pedestal, and she just can’t reach. He’s harsh in teaching, sometimes moody, sometimes gentle, he’s everything she wanted and more, but. There’s always a but. And in this case, that ‘but’ was that he was a king, and she an ant. All those expectations he and the people around him had for her were unreachable._

_Would it be bad if he let go that very day? Truthfully, he had been thinking about it long ago, how things would go if, or rather when, they broke up. And her reaction was something within his expectations. The time span of their relationship was also within his expectations. So, was it bad when he just simply hugged her, told her to take care, and took his luggage and belongings with him when he left through the front door and walked all the way to the train that very day? Was it too sudden? Should he have been more hurt, more grieving? Should he have begged one more time, stayed one more day, one last time?_

_If he’s honest with himself, then he would say he doesn’t know. After that goodbye, he felt numb. There were no more letters or news, none from him, none from her. He continued on with his life. He graduated the academy a month after they broke up, worked in the Ministry of Magic, and had been steadily promoted ever since. He had been back to his stellar performance, the same old harsh and brutal Klaus, but this time with a heart more guarded than it used to be._

 

He walked over to the files that his father sent him via a stuttering rookie. There were folders, each with a picture, name, background, and application of the academy’s soon-to-be graduates. Most of the faces were familiar, like his brother’s, his brother’s it’s-a-complicated-relationship/classmate Luca Orlem, there was also werewolf boy, to name a few. Sitting on the sofa, he scanned through each file until he found a few who suited his tastes. Those people were still, quite indeed, lacking, but they were capable enough to work in the Ministry.

An hour later, the blonde was just finished packing when he heard a loud knock on his door.

“Come-”

“Seriously son, do I still need to knock? I am your father, for God's sake,” his father jokingly said. Walter Goldstein walked in, his demeanor way more approachable as his hairs turned whiter each year.

“Yes, Father, you do. I’ve told you that many times. Or is it that your memory is failing? In that case, call Mum.”

“No, no, no need to call your mother. I may be getting behind my years young man, but I can still beat you in a duel if I need to,” Walter said, his language obviously influenced by his younger partner, who came from the streets back when he was young but was pretty talented in both brawn and brain.

Klaus took his briefcase, “Unnecessary,” and handed over a few files to his father. “These are the people I’ve chosen. Not the best lot, but capable enough.”

“Hmm, you didn’t include your brother?”

“Hn.”

“Why? I do believe people won't say you're biased, since he’s considerably smart in a lot of areas.”

“Correction, book-smart. We’re in the criminal and defense section. Adding him here would be like adding chicken to a pork stew, since his area of expertise is not suitable. And it’s exactly because he’s my brother that I don’t want to endanger his life,” Klaus reasoned. 

“Pork stew, huh? Speaking of which, I haven’t eaten dinner. Does the train have anything…” his father’s voice droned on by his side. It was already nine in the evening. For workaholics, eating dinner isn’t really a priority.

“When will Elias’ graduation- oh dear, she applied!” His father mentioned.

Klaus looked over his father’s hands, which held the file of a young, plain girl. Her black hair with bits of brown at the tip was at neck-level, hiding the roundness of her face and those chubby, pinchable cheeks. Her eyes were a little upturned, a shade of darker brown. The photos showed her smiling tight-lipped, ranging from pale to light pink. Her skin was of warmer colors, not that white, but wasn’t also that brown. She had a dust of leftover pimples, but weren’t really obvious unless one had as keen of eyes as Klaus had.

He looked over to his father questioningly.

“You remember the case where my team had difficulty tracking the criminal? Hmmm, we did a lot of work to catch him. We used the search spell, the Bloodhounds, even the device I invented a few years ago, but that wizard was slippery as hell. This girl was the one who cracked it. And I could've still kept my pride from asking a student if it only didn't take her like 10 minutes!”

Klaus nodded accordingly. He had seen her background and the report on that case. Her affinity to magic wasn’t exactly as high as Elias and Klaus, in fact, the last time her affinity was recorded, it was just average. This disabled her to use a wand, and she had to carry around a tablet in order to do magic - or as what rumors say. But once she did, even he could see her performances were around his level back when he was a student. Her concentration and perception of magic were really high and allowed her to become a prefect of the Night Class. He never realized, or even if he did, he’d never admit it, but she piqued his interest.

“Hmm, talented indeed,” Klaus said as he nodded to the guards who opened the front door of the building. A sleek black carriage with the Goldstein crest had already been waiting for them, his mother’s shadow quite obvious from the distance. Klaus was about to look at the file again, to search for the girl's name, but his father had already closed it and was five steps ahead of him.

Sighing once more, he walked in the street, the coldness of the night enveloping his rigid frame.


	2. Graduation Day

Gedonelune Academy, 20XX - the present time

 

It was 4 in the morning. There wasn’t even a trace of any sunrise yet. The sky was dark, with the moon and a sprinkle of stars lighting it up a little bit. For a normal person, the surroundings could be described as ‘silent’. Everyone in the dorms was sleeping in their beds, even the Night Class students. Everyone except one.

A girl was seen sitting in her bedroom’s windowsill. A peek into the room would label it as fairly empty, almost similar to a certain blonde man’s office. Unlike all the other girls', her room was devoid of any pinkish stuff, elaborate beddings and sheets, or jewelry and combs by the vanity mirror, not that she had a vanity mirror. 

The girl opened her eyes and looked at the clock. She had four more hours before graduation starts. Clicking her tongue once, she opened a door to the bathroom and started to get ready. Thank the headmaster for not having a roommate, she thought. Without checking the temperature of the water, she immersed herself in the tub, the cold seeping in her bones and waking her up fully. She clicked her tongue again, annoyed, or more likely anxious, at the thought of having to spend graduation with the Day students. 

It’s not that she was influenced by the stereotypes that they were weak and her class was stronger. No, it’s not that at all. 

She came to this academy as a Day Class student four years ago, when she was still 18 years, and back then, she was just an average student from an average family. Her magic affinity was recorded to be 657, which was the normal range for her peers, unless one is from the Goldstein family with the average 800. She was hardworking though. Very quickly, after three months, her name was already on the top 5 students of the Day Class, along with Elias Goldstein and Cerim Leiado.

But as what they said, “Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.” For the Annual Magic Competition, onstage, her magic went haywire and unexpectedly attacked her opponent brutally. After getting disqualified, the case was taken up to the Headmaster and the professors to be investigated. It took seven days. And for that time period, a lot of people looked at her in distaste. She was very quiet in class, and most times just slept or spaced out. 

_"Silent dogs sure are deadly. "_

_"Psst, here she comes!"_

When she was summoned in front of Headmaster Rembrandt, they talked about a lot of things, and reached a conclusion. She took the trials to become a Prefect, passed, and transferred to the night class. And she had avoided the Day Class like a plague ever since.

 

She stood in front of a half-body mirror, dressed up in her usual prefect attire, which was just a slightly modified version of the Night Class uniform but with black pants and silver highlights. Black long bob layered hair with brown tips, dark brown eyes, a few pimples here and there. She thought to herself. _I look so plain. Nah, who cares. It's just graduation. What's special anyways?_

She looked at the clock, which showed it was still half past 5 o’clock. A pissed off look on her face could already show people what she was thinking about. Pacing in her room, she looked at the bat perched on top of her bedside lamp. 

“I know right. Can time get any slower?” The bat, her familiar, who claimed her name was Twilight, said.

“Shut your sarcasm, Twi.”

“Hey, I’m not the one who’s wondering if her dad’s coming,” the bat said cheekily, flapping about at the room.

“Stop it, Twilight. I don’t wanna jinx anything,” Sianus said, flopping down the bed.

The bat didn’t reply, and instead perched on other… perch-able objects in the room.

Sianus went back to sit on her window. It was true, what Twilight said. She didn’t know if her father would attend her graduation, although she did send a letter a few weeks ago. Back when she left for the academy, the family was in shambles. She could remember her mother yelling-- _Stop thinking. You’re just jinxing yourself._

The girl let out a deep puff of air. If she focused, she could hear the alarms of a few girls blaring up only to be silenced by their friends, the dorm mother busying about in the kitchen, with all the cling clangs of the pans. She looked at the bat, who was looking very much like her a few minutes ago, pissed. 

“Busy day, huh?” She smirked at the bat.

“Wow, Sisi, so smart. I’m like, so impressed. How’d you know it was a busy day, hmm?”

“Wanna get out of here?” 

“Well, why didn’t you say it earlier? Let’s go!” Sianus slightly smiled and attached her Magic Tablet to her wrist. The tablet currently couldn’t actually be called a tablet. Maybe a pocket notebook that was really thin and could be an extension of a watch. She draped her graduation gown over the other hand, slung a belt bag over her waist, and opened the door.

“Sisi, the hat,” Her familiar reminded her, carrying a black graduation hat that everybody was required to wear. 

“Oh, sorry, I forgot.”

After seeing that she had what she needed, Sianus went downstairs to the main dining hall to get a cup of coffee and a sandwich. She quickly finished it and thanked the dorm mother, not wanting to spend any more time in the presence of people, especially girls. The messengers of gossip.

“Ya know, with your attitude, how did you become prefect again?” The bat snickered, perching on top of her cloak. Her owner just rolled her eyes and continued walking to the Prefect’s Office, which she shared with Zeus Brundle and Hiro Tachibana. 

“And with your attitude, how did you become my familiar again? And for the record, I do teach them. Sometimes.”

“Phht, if you could call once a month ‘sometimes’. More like, once in a moon… something. Is that how you humans call it?”

“Once in a blue moon. You're pretty talkative today. Have you been spending time with Chica?” Sianus stared at her familiar. Unlike Leslie Roseblade’s familiar, her bat was more of a darker shade of violet and had silver eyes. It actually came from the endangered species, Vampire Vespers, who fed on human wizard blood which allowed them to increase their magic too, but after being hunted and by extension- eaten, they hid in the forests and resorted to magic animals. 

She found Twilight three years ago in the Cursed Labyrinth back when she was just a new prefect. She had been looking with Lucious for a place to laze about, because if she stayed any longer in the office, there was a huge possibility that a murder would occur and a certain blue-haired tanned idiot’s admirers would be the victims. The bat had unknowingly flown in the maze after running from Hugo knows where and had lost a lot of blood. After healing and feeding him with her blood, the bat had wanted to stick by her, claiming that her blood was, verbatim, “so delicious that she’d willingly do anything just to get a drop of it.”

 

At the same time, Twilight said, “Why would I spend time with that lovesick fool. Hey, where’s my food?”

Snapping out of her thoughts, Sianus noticed that they had just arrived in the Prefect’s Office, where a pile of chocolates and love letters barricaded the front. A little annoyed, she put her hand in the doorknob, released a bit of her magic, and went in, but not before she waved her hand and teleported the girly-reeking pile to her fellow prefect's whereabouts. The lights immediately turned on, and she flopped down on the sofa. Twilight looked at her lazy-ass master and closed the door, trying to curry her favor for food. Sianus looked at her pet, and just stretched a finger that wasn’t bandaged to the bat’s direction. Twilight’s face could be seen curving up, as she dug two sharp incisors to her master's finger. Sianus didn’t even wince or make a sound, her eyes closing as she was lulled to sleep by the quiet office and the dimly lit lamps.

 

They stayed like that for a long time, with Sianus slipping in and out of consciousness. After some time passed by, she could hear a pair of thunderous footsteps accompanied with an opposite light pair. They were obviously coming to the office, and she mentally prepared herself. 

“Sisi, you got the guts!” Zeus Brundle opened the door to his, umm their, office and found his target of rage lying in the sofa face-down and a dark bat sucking on her finger.

“Your inner voice, Zoey,” the target snickered, her dark brown eyes meeting up to face his, and saw a mad Zeus and a drained-out Hiro following him.

“No, don’t call me Zoey, dammit, I wish I could strangle you. You know what, I need a cup,” Zeus’ voice was in all range of highs and lows. Thank the room they had soundproof magic set up. 

She raised her eyebrows at Hiro who shrugged and said, “You dropped the pile of chocolates at the end of our buffet table. No one laughed, but... some congratulated him.”

Zeus was staring at the sloth-lady who was lying on the couch while sipping a cup of coffee. The sloth muttered, “C’mon, cheer up, it’s graduation day. Besides, I made sure to scratch their names out.”

“You should’ve scratched my name out instead,” Zeus said, still eying the sloth.

She rolled her eyes at him and asked Hiro in a groggy voice, “What time is it?”

“7. Should we?" Hiro gestured at the door.

Sianus sat up and tucked in her toes to her ankle boots. Her familiar had long stopped sucking her finger after Zeus and Hiro arrived. After putting on their graduation gowns and getting ready, Zeus and Hiro walked together to the stadium, where the ceremony would be held. 

Sighing once more, Sianus followed them, the daylight seeping through the cracks of academy’s underground class.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Magical Affinity is something I created. It's like IQ in wizard form. It's like how compatible a human or a creature is to use magic. A score of 500 below is just a human and can't do magic. Most wizards range from 600-700. 800 and above are the incredibly talented individuals, like the Goldsteins, Randy, Zeus, and most characters/boys from WH. In this case, I think Headmaster Randolph and Rembrandt and Professor Schuyler are around 950. 
> 
> (This will be useful in the later chapters to explain Sianus' case.)


	3. Graduation Night, Part 1

Auditorium, 6 in the evening

 

They had only been here for less than half an hour, but Klaus and Elias were already frowning and looked like they were about to erupt any minute now. The cause?

The girls around them. 

“Elias!” Caesar Raphael saw the two brothers, well Elias especially, and came over to rescue them. He politely waved the girls off and grinned at the two blondes. 

“Oh, hey Klaus. Where’s Alfonse? I thought I saw him earlier,” the pinkette said while leading Elias and Klaus to the second floor, where all the nobilities and top students were gathering. 

“He did come, but he wouldn’t stay for the party,” Elias said, refusing a wine glass a waiter offered nearby. It seemed as if he was looking for someone, because his eyes kept darting around from person to person.

“Ah, same old Al. By the way, congratulations on your speech back then. As expected of our valedictorian,” Caesar smiled. He had graduated a year earlier, but he had been Elias’ mentor in becoming a Day Class prefect. 

“Thank you,” the younger brother said graciously. He and Caesar talked about after-graduation plans, and Klaus excused himself.

The older Goldstein had been stressed with work. There was a case of another dark wizard that he had to solve, and though he was close to finishing it, he’d rather think about the case than the memories this auditorium left him. He placed himself in the drinks area, and asked for a glass of wine whilst remembering details of his work, but images of Liz still disturb his concentration. 

“I’ll have whatever he’s having,” a cold, feminine voice interrupted his dilemma.

 

__________________________________________________

 

“Doll, mmm, you look stunning,” Zeus, seemingly on his second glass, or was it bottle, of whiskey, told Sianus. They were on the second floor of the ballroom, which was full of Ministry agents and wealthy families, and Sianus admits that she feels out of place.

“You don’t look so bad yourself,” she joked, but was also impressed. It was her first time seeing Zeus in a dark blue tux and though his bowtie was obviously crooked, he looked regal, just like everybody else. “Where’s Hiro?” She asked.

“In here-- oh wait, where’d he go? I could’ve sworn he was here a minute ago,” Zeus turned around and tripped a little. It was a good thing Sianus still had her hand on his arm, or he would’ve definitely crashed with an innocent waiter. 

“Jesus, you’re drunk,” the girl exclaimed. She fiddled with the Magic Tablet on her arm and minutes later, Zeus felt a bit sober. 

“Gee, thanks for that. New spell?”

Sianus just rolled her eyes and said, “Go find Hiro before I throw your ass off these stairs.”

“Aren’t you gonna come with me?”

“Nope. No time. Nuh-uh. I need a shot to calm my nerves,” she nudged him towards his black-haired companion who was stopped by a few Ministry agents a few feet away from them. Zeus nodded and patted her head, not prying any further, before going to his friend.

Sianus went the other way, to the drinks bar. Placing herself on an unoccupied stool, she looked at the man’s drink beside her before telling the bartender, “I’ll have whatever he’s having.”

 

Klaus looked at the girl who spoke. She was two seats away, and wore a form-fitting black long-neck dress that showed half of her back and a slit up to her right knee. Unlike most girls who chose to wear their hair down in beach waves and drown themselves in layers of pearls, the girl in front of him opted for a simple braided bun and added on a silver-leaf hair accessory, a silver thin pendant necklace, silver earring studs, and a grey wristwatch that had something like a small notebook attached to it. All-in-all, she dressed simply but exuded an aura of ice and aloofness. If it were any other girl, Klaus would’ve already frowned and left, but he was actually pretty curious.

Sianus also looked at the blonde man with the drink. He was dressed in a white inner blouse with a black vest, black slacks, and a white long coat with gold buttons. There was a gold and silver metallic watch in his left hand that was slightly hidden in his coat and a ring that had traces of magic in it, which she concluded was where he keeps his wand. But what captivated her most were his eyes. A man, alone, sipping on wine? She might have just disturbed his innermost thoughts, since no eyes could disguise such raw sadness than those of the man before her. As expected, the moment he realized there was company, he jerked himself away and guarded himself so that she couldn’t see any more emotions.

“I apologize for the intrusion, if you don’t mind,” she gestured to a glass that suddenly appeared in front of her, courtesy to the bartender who could see an incoming tension between his two isolated customers. The man gave a slight shake, and raised his glass too.

“It’s fine, I don’t. In fact, better to keep some things off my mind,” Klaus paused for a while. “My name--”

“Amen to that-- Oh, sorry, I didn’t realize you were still saying something. But you don’t have to tell me your name. I’d probably forget it after all the alcohol in my system tonight,” Sianus smirked at him, and downed her third glass of wine. 

Klaus unknowingly smiled, and raised his glass once again. The girl in front of him was indeed unexpected, and Klaus found himself gravitating slightly to her. “To strangers, then.”

“To strangers,” the girl agreed. There was a slight pause before any of them continued.

“So, what made you come here? I doubt that you’re a student in the academy, considering, you know, you’re kind of… old,” Sianus asked. She was hesitant at first at saying ‘old’, but she had the feeling the man in front of her wouldn’t really be offended.

“My little brother is the student. And excuse you, I’m not that old.” That was actually the first time someone said he was old, without the words ‘brother’ or ‘son’ following it, and Klaus didn’t know whether to feel worried that his appearance was getting behind his years or to laugh that someone unwittingly said that to the ex-Emperor’s face.

“My bad, my bad. I meant you look more experienced and hands-on than most fresh graduates are. You have that… I don’t know how to call it… ‘aura’, I guess? Anyway,” Sianus stopped from embarrassing herself, seeing as the guy was already grinning, “You must love him a lot.”

“Who?”

“Your little brother. You described him little instead of younger.”

“Oh, I do. I was the one who basically taught him magic from when he was still a kid. He… kind of grew on me, I guess,” Klaus smiled slightly. She didn’t know why, but there was something in that smile that made Sianus’ heart skip a beat after seeing it.

“Your parents…?”

“Our father was absent, mostly from working in the Ministry. In a way, I guess we had an eldest brother who wants to run away from his responsibilities, and oh, of course, our mother. You know how mothers are.”

“Hmm, I don’t actually. My mother called me a disappointment or a mistake. One might actually think those were my name,” Sianus downed her fifth glass. Her grip had slightly tightened, and Klaus, with his keen eye, noticed it.

“Your father?”

“A henpecked husband. Although I’m glad they’ve separated already.”

“Must be tough,” the blonde looked at the girl beside him, noticing she didn’t mention whether any of her relatives were right there in the room, but decided to just let it go.

Sianus just clicked her tongue. “Nah, you learn to live with what you’re given. So, where do you work?”

“Ministry of Magic, Department of Criminal Justice.”

“Damn, that’s stressful. How does your SO think about it?”

“SO?”

“Special one? Girlfriend? Lover?”

“I don’t have one.”

“No kidding.”

The blonde shook his head.

“So, heartbroken,” Sianus concluded.

“What? What makes you think that?”

“When I saw you, you looked sad. And I thought, if you’re not thinking about a girl, then it would be how to break the news of a mistress to your wife. You don’t seem to have a wedding ring, so definitely the first one,” Sianus sipped some wine for the nth time, and flashed a smile at the surprised man beside her.

“I could very well be thinking about my job.”

“Oh sure, like a job in Criminal Justice is worth crying over. Nuh-uh," Sianus made a funny face at him.

Klaus paused for a while, silently applauding the girl beside him for her courage. He was about to say, “I guess you’re right--”

 

“Good evening, everyone! Gentlemen. Ladies, especially the single ones. Good evening. I am your host, Sigurd Curtis, an alumnus of this school from five years ago,” A loud voice went booming over and overlapped with Klaus’ voice, disabling Sianus from hearing what he was about to say. After the applause, Sigurd then continued.

“As of now, we’ll continue with our first event as requested by the Ministry of Magic. The team showdown!”

Cheers of excitement and applauses thundered in the auditorium. Everyone was looking forward to this main event, old and young alike. The Ministry usually chooses six students, three per team, to engage in a friendly battle. These students were mostly from the top-performers, which made everyone look forward to it. This year was of no exception.

“From the Day Class, the two graduating prefects: Elias Goldstein and Yukiya Reizen, and deputy prefect: Luca Orlem!” Some yellow spotlights, from God knows where, shone on the three people, who were coincidentally together. Their faces were also shown in the widescreen that the auditorium installed three years ago. The people around, especially the Day Class students, were applauding, approving of the team. 

“Versus the Night Class, the three prefects: Zeus Brundle, Hiro Tachibana, and Sianus Taylors!” Like earlier, a spotlight shone on the three, but this time in blue. Hiro could be barely seen as he supported Zeus’ huge frame, who was definitely drunk. Sianus had already gotten away from her chat-mate, and was seen rushing over to her fellow prefects. The Night Class cheered and openly laughed, but the other older visitors disliked Zeus’ behavior. Even Luca from the Day Class could control himself better, they said so themselves.

 

While the custodians were preparing the wide center stage of the auditorium, the ‘Night Class Team’ had situated themselves near the men’s toilet, as a certain unruly idiot faced the toilet after being forced to swallow a vomit pill by Sianus. 

“This scene looks a lot like a girl on her pregnancy stage,” she snickered while leaning on the door to the men’s restroom.

“Fuck you, Taylors!” Zeus shouted, but he didn’t even finish most of the sentence after retching again.

“Hiro, what happened anyway?” She asked.

Hiro just shrugged and asked instead, “What’s with the Team Battle?”

“Oh, that’s an annual thing, apparently. It’s fine. We have already trained in our free time, and we know each other’s magic well. And we don’t really have to win,” Sianus explained, and Zeus finally stopped with his pitiful situation, which prompted her to throw him a towel.

“No, we have to. Those old hags laughed at me. I want to punch them so bad…” Zeus mumbled as he washed his mouth with water. After retching his guts out, he had quickly turned sober, save for a dull headache but none that Sianus couldn’t cure.

“Yo, doll, my head,” Zeus said, after throwing his bowtie somewhere and opening up two buttons up front.

Sianus rolled her eyes. “C’mere,” she gestured with her finger, and when Zeus was close, she flicked him hard on the forehead. 

“Gah. You have to do that?” Zeus begrudgingly muttered.

“Nope, I didn’t have to. I wanted to.” Before the last words left her lips, Sianus took Hiro’s hands and ran to the auditorium’s front doors. Zeus then responded to the chase. 

When they arrived, everyone’s eyes turned around them, and Zeus had never seen Sianus’ playful attitude turn 180 degrees into a frosty aura as fast as a blink of an eye. He wasn’t the only one who had noticed. 

A certain blonde man with a wine glass on his hand on the second floor also did.


	4. Graduation Night, Part 2

Klaus looked at the girl who had spoken with him earlier that evening. After Sigurd’s interruption, he had gone back to where his parents were and wished his brother luck on the way. Frankly, he never expected his first meeting with Sianus Taylors to be that… intriguing.

“That’s the girl I mentioned last night,” Walter Goldstein waved over to Sianus’ direction. From afar, her team could be seen eating pastries instead of listening intently to the mechanics, unlike the Day Class Team. 

"I know," Klaus said. At this point in time, the two Goldstein were standing side by side, both giving off an imposing and royal vibe. It could also not be denied that Klaus looked very much like his father.

“She’s indeed very gifted and would’ve soared higher, if not some mistake that happened on her first year,” Walter commented, genuinely lamenting at the events that made a sudden turn on her school life at the academy.

“Some mistake?” Klaus urged his father to continue on with the story.

“No, I believe it was just an accident, but the incident has indeed some plot holes. Four years ago, in the Annual Magic Competition, she was still a Day Student back then, and was about to enter the Top 3 until she injured another student, resulting in the latter’s three broken ribs and a lot of bruises. The report on the incident was obviously hiding something, but it’s common knowledge that this event caused Taylors’ reputation to go downhill, which then led her to transfer to the Night Class,” his father summarized.

“Hmm, that incident was indeed something unexpected. Although the student summoned a strong shield, her magic broke through and hurt the boy. With her level of concentration, I don’t think that is possible. I’ve met her two years ago, and that control over magic can’t be reached by anyone if not for years of practice. But I may be wrong…” Walter stroke his chin, lost in thought. 

Klaus looked ahead, and saw that the competition was starting. He was curious as to how good this Taylors really is, especially when his father had a good impression of her and everyone was saying her level was on par with Klaus’ when he was younger.

 

Meanwhile, Sianus and her team were, as outsiders see it, slacking off. The Day Class had the impression that the Night Class prefects were snobbing and mocking them, and the Night Class approved of what their superiors were doing. Like the Day Class, the students in the Night Class also looked up to their prefects. Zeus Brundle was a tsundere eye-candy and had this unruly, proud attitude that does nothing but increase the atmosphere of his royal blood. Hiro Tachibana was Zeus’ best friend who had a powerful yet mysterious magic, and as much as girls would like to deny it, they had already built ships for these two and these ships don’t seem to be sinking at all, but were instead steadily sailing.

And there’s Sianus Taylors. When she first came into the class as a prefect, the others had doubts about her, and even gossip spread, so as to demean her confidence. But this prefect had kept her icy attitude that demanded respect, even when a male student challenged her on her first lesson. It is quite true that she taught fast and straight to the point that some students sometimes couldn’t keep up, but unlike her predecessors, she had given private lessons to each student who failed. At first, the students who failed were reluctant to go, but a few weeks pass by, and they were even taking their friends with them! And Prefect Taylors never turned down a student. 

Even until now, the Night Class couldn't fathom how good her magic really is. She usually just stuck around to being a referee, although they see her casting all kinds of spells often. That’s why they were excited to see this battle. Two star-crossed bros plus their… er… most respected prefect! Who would pass this chance? Of course, they did hear about what happened from a Day student a long time ago, but anyone hearing their reply would cough blood!

“Three broken ribs? Damn, Prefect Taylors sure was holding back her strength!”

“Oh, just broken ribs? Isn’t that your Day Class’ fault for being too weak? No wonder she had to transfer to us Night Class.”

"Hmm, indeed, Night Class is way better."

The Day Class could only fume in anger. And followed by Sianus’ languid voice, “Ooh, these orange tarts taste heavenly. Give my compliments to the chef, will you?” the Day Class could only grit their teeth and wish that their prefects would finish these cocky people in a flash.

 

“Si, you okay?” Zeus asked, stretching his arms as if he was about to enter a bar brawl than a magic duel. He leaned in for the waiter’s plate of tarts and popped one in his mouth, nodding along to the taste.

“Yeah, of course,” Sianus asked. She also popped another one to her mouth. And another one. And another one. And another…

“Okay, stop it. You have to calm down,” Zeus won’t admit it, but seeing her anxious made him feel anxious too. He had heard from the previous Headmaster about the ‘incident’ and how her magic is something unstable, but he had long stopped asking questions about it after seeing her stutter and shake and distance herself. Hiro had also seen the girl nervous, as if she's ready to bolt out the stage any time now, but he had kept quiet, not knowing how to voice his thoughts.

 

Sianus knew her fear wouldn’t be welcome here and would only end up worsening the situation. She may even drag the team down if this continues. As icy and apathetic she may seem outside, she does care for people and would love nothing more than to revert to her silly and playful side, but reality seemed to be always going against her. Forgetting to reply to Zeus, she let out a deep breath and continued to listen to Sigurd Curtis’ rules for the competition.

 

Elias Goldstein, Luca Orlem, and Yukiya Reizen stayed quiet at their side of the circle. From afar, one would think that they were intently listening on the mechanics, and were even ‘planning’, but reality proved to be a little different. After seeing their ex-classmate appear just a few steps ahead of them, the three, instead of paying attention, were recalling memories with Sianus that they haven’t told anyone at all. 

On her first day, the four of them were quite friends. She sat on the desk behind Yukiya, facing the window, and had an unusual greeting that Yukiya would never forget.

“Hey, can you be my shield?”

Yukiya and Elias, who was sitting near, underwent a minute of overthinking.

“Oh, sorry. I mean, I usually sleep a lot and since you’re considerably tall, would you mind if I take seat behind you so I can sleep in class and not get caught?”

That was the first in the long time that Yukiya had smiled and nodded.

Yukiya wasn’t sure at first how Sianus would react to everybody isolating him. He treated her friendliness as a one-time thing that would disappear after she finished her trial, but it had already been two months, and it didn’t feel like she was switching seats any time soon. After a while, he let down his guard and mumbled along some words in response to her. He had noticed, that unlike many, she respected his silence, and they were both comfortable with each other that he even lent her notes in classes that she sleep in.

As for Elias, he had long since considered Sianus as a reliable friend and something sort of an idol. Although he didn’t specifically mention her name, he had acknowledged her role in his valedictorian speech earlier that morning, thanking her for helping him understand that it was time to start doing things for himself, and not for others’ expectations. It would've been nice to stay close to her, but things got rocky after that magic duel, and their friendship had faded over time. Sometimes, they would meet in magic tool competitions or in libraries, but Sianus’ eyes would become guarded, and she would only pass by, and occasionally utter a word of advice for whatever he was doing.

Luca, on the other hand, had winked at Sianus earlier, which she returned with a playful roll of her eyes and a small, barely noticeable smile. Their siblinghood was deeper than any other person in the room, and only the two of them know it. But, that was a story for later.

 

Right now, the battle was about to commence, and the two sides had to prepare.


	5. Graduation Night: Battle Commence!

“And now, ladies and gentlemen, the moment we are all waiting for… Let the Team Battle commence!”

Sigurd Curtis’ loud voice was a pain to Sianus’ ears. She couldn’t fathom his need to shout at the microphone, when he could already be heard by everyone in the room. Ignoring the headache brought by the cheers and loud voices, she looked on what the Ministry had given the six of them.

The game was simple, and was like what happens each year. Each team would have to work together for three rounds worth half an hour each to get the pink flag that was hung on a pole two meters tall and was protected by a complicated barrier. And because only a handful of teams could break the barrier in the span of 50 years of this tradition, they had added a circulating magic ball - that was considered to be the ‘life’ of a person - years ago. If one’s ball is depleted or outright destroyed, it would result in the member’s discontinuation.

 

From the second floor, Klaus Goldstein and his father were still looking at the circle platform.

“Who do you think would win, Father?” Klaus asked, his gaze torn between his little brother and the alluring girl who he talked earlier with.

“If this was a one-on-one battle, no matter who the opponent is, I would bet on Miss Taylors. But with the disadvantage caused by her team members, I’d have to say the Day Class,” Walter said to his son, inwardly complaining on how he still couldn’t measure the extent of Taylors’ magic even until now.

“I’ve worked with Zeus Brundle before. Although he’s arrogant, his magic is impressive.”

“Indeed, but he’s impulsive.”

“I would have to agree,” Klaus replied, but not before letting his gaze fall on the young woman, unknowingly wishing her luck.

 

Downstairs was boiling with excitement. Elias had the reputation of valedictorian to uphold, Luca was thrilled at the thought of battling his sect sister, and Yukiya was so-so. Zeus had his reputation of being a drunkard to save, but other than that, the three Night students weren’t thinking too much for this battle aside from how nice it would be to get the sweet taste of victory.

 

“In 3… 2… 1…, start!”

Sianus immediately took her Magic Tablet and spread it in front of her, suspended in air, like a mini-piano. Her fingers were busy typing in a translucent screen. 

“Initiating barrier, Scuntum Ventos, completion rate… 100%!” 

In less than a minute, a barrier enough for Zeus’ magic circle had been set up by Sianus. Just a few meters away from her, Zeus had already started with his preparation to summon a Harpia Eagle, a type of bird who’s known to throw fireballs and break barriers by scratching it. 

Hiro was positioned in front of them, and Sianus an arm’s away behind him. In the Day Class, Elias was the one who analyzed the magic barrier for the pink flag, Yukiya was trying to sneak to interrupt Zeus’ summoning, and Luca was having fun blasting spells at Hiro, who was sending them in Sianus’ direction.

Sianus, on the other hand, was trying to fend off Luca’s spells and interrupting Elias’ concentration. She didn’t have to worry about Yukiya, because she was confident her magic barrier would be strong enough to last for as long as she wanted it to. 

“Hiro, you might have to be a fruit ninja,” she snickered while keeping her eyes in her mini-piano, disabling all of Luca’s spells that had passed through the space Hiro was cutting and sent up to her. 

“This is getting boring,” Hiro said in reply to Sianus’ taunt. Although he had long been unable to use magic, Sianus made use of him to direct where her spells go to. This way, she didn’t have to worry on directly attacking her opponent which would probably lead to another incident like before, and she didn’t have to calculate the direction on where her spells were going to disturb Elias’ concentration. This continued on for about 10 minutes, until Zeus muttered a large, “Hot, damn!”

In where Zeus was, a huge eagle with a wingspan about one and a half meter was seen screeching and blowing fire to the audience.

 

“Using a Harpia eagle is useless. The Ministry’s barrier is very strong and would not be broken easily. Are they playing the Ministry for being dumb?”

Whispers were heard in the audience. Even the faces of the Ministry’s agents were a little green. To be underestimated was something no one wants, but the Night Prefects had done just that, and to a noble, famous institution no less.

 

The eagle, although Zeus summoned it, flew to Sianus’ direction, who said, “Go, handsome. Show ‘em what you got.” The eagle flew and landed on top of the pink flag’s barrier. It started hurling fireballs at Elias’ direction, which was intercepted by Luca’s water balls.

“How’s the barrier? Any leads?” Yukiya hurried over to his friends to regroup.

“It’s the type of barrier that would not give up unless you fire it with a series of exact spells. And the more spells you hit the barrier with, if not in sequence, will make it more complicated!” Elias told his team, who were shielding themselves under the rage of a huge creature. 

Suddenly, the magic barrier gave off a light, which was a form of warning, and the eagle flew away.

“Hiro, now!” Sianus whispered, and Hiro sliced the dimension in front of her. Without thinking twice, she leapt through it, and was transported a few yards on top of the translucent barrier. Elias, thinking that she was there to blast it off, told Luca, “Stop her!”

But Luca’s fireballs were too late. Sianus had already said, “Turbo Ventos!” and her Magic Tablet released a tornado to the flag. Hiro, seeing that Sianus was about to get hurt with the fireballs, cut open another dimension to send the fireballs on Zeus’ direction, mumbling a soft sorry.

Zeus, who was facing off Yukiya with his dark magic, was gritting his teeth at Hiro’s actions, thinking, “Isn’t this doofus supposed to protect me? Why is he sending fireballs in my direction instead?”

Hiro transported Sianus on air in seven more times, with her magic directing at the barrier and Luca and Elias targeting either her or the bird. After seeing Sianus nod, Hiro surprised Elias by facing towards him and creating an open space under his feet. Thankfully, Elias managed to jump on another spot. But the fight was about to reach the unexpected end.

Quicker than a blink of an eye, Sianus was transported to where Luca was, squashing his Circulating Ball with her feet. She muttered an “Oops,” alerting Luca, who had his hands on air and was grinning. Hiro got slightly distracted at how Sianus cracked the ball, and Elias took advantage of it by sending a tornado on his direction. Zeus, who was still battling Yukiya, saw it, and tried to push Hiro away, which ended on Elias’ tornado hitting Zeus’ Circulating Ball. Yukiya also took advantage of the position where Zeus and Hiro ended up and sent a fireball on Hiro’s CB which was lying beneath his feet. Right after, the timer rang.

“The results of the first round: Luca Orlem of Day Class, out! Zeus Brundle and Hiro Tachibana, out! Please go out of the stage. Battle starts again in 3… 2… 1, go!”

After Luca willingly left after sending a wink to Elias, and Zeus and Hiro fell from the stage, trying to escape each other and that position they were in, Sianus faced off with Elias and Yukiya. 

After seeing how the Circulating Balls of her teammates were destroyed, Sianus looked at her own, which transferred to her back yet again. Feeling pissed off, she pointed her Magic Tablet and sent a Turbo Ventos yet again to the barrier. Although it was faint, she could still hear some of the Ministry’s agents having a sharp intake of breath.

“Umm… no matter what spell you throw to the barrier, unless it’s in the perfect sequence, it won’t open. You’re only making it more complicated,” Elias told the girl, unsure of how to act. Yukiya looked at the top of the two-meter pole, his eyes squinting.

“I know.”

Sianus walked towards them, and the two people inched further away, their guards steady. But something unexpected happened next.

The girl who Elias had thought was offended and wanted to settle things with him, turned around and pointed her Magic Tablet to her Circulating Ball which was at her back and destroyed it. Walking to where her teammates were gathered, she delivered a strong punch that shook the pole and the pink cloth fell down, as if there was no barrier. 

Everyone in the vicinity was shocked, especially the Ministry.

 

No sooner than her feet had left the platform when a voice was broadcasted on the loudspeakers of the auditorium.

“-logize, Sir, she moved too unexpectedly, I couldn’t control her Circulating Ball fast enough to evade her magic.”

 

Gasps could be heard to the audience. The voice was a male’s, young but trained, but the ‘she’ he was talking about was clearly Sianus and her last actions of destroying her own Circulating Ball. There were a lot of murmurs on the crowd, all of them looking at the Ministry with distrust. Before the competition, they introduced the Circulating Balls as magical items that just move randomly, but it seemed as if…

Well, of course, the person concerned seemed to just ignore it, and was sipping a glass of wine. Sianus was currently walking with Zeus and Hiro to the second floor. 

 

“Christ, they actually dared to rig the balls?” Zeus was fuming. His tousled hair, angry look, and unkempt top with a few open buttons were enough to send most girls into blushing tomatoes, but Sianus was looking cold and a sharpness was evident in her eyes that was only usually seen when she’s incredibly pissed.

“No wonder,” Hiro said, thinking to the time when Zeus tried to shield him and both of their balls suspiciously ended up right where the opponents’ direction of magic went.

“To make a fool of me, I definitely won’t forgive!” The blue-haired idiot was livid, but what he said… Hiro and Sianus looked at each other and raised their eyebrows teasingly.

“Oh, shut up Zoey, you don’t need people to blame for you being a fool,” Sianus couldn’t help but grin at her fellow prefect’s blunder.

“I second that,” Hiro said teasingly, following Sianus’ lead.

They had reached the second floor, and everyone was looking at them and making space. Just earlier, they could hear Sigurd apologizing for the blunder and announcing the Day Class as winners, in which the Day Class prefects didn’t take seriously. 

“Speaking of which, how did you… the flag?” Zeus asked Sianus as they made their way over the balcony area. The three of them didn’t like being stared at, and were looking of ways to escape it.

“The combination was easy, it only took several spells.”

Without caring a bit of everyone staring at them, Zeus let out a huge cackle.

“That’s my girl,” he said.

“You wish. There’s no way my future boyfriend would be an idiot,” Sianus said, and earned a laugh from Hiro which he disguised as a cough. Zeus shot a look at both of them, but was only rewarded with light giggles.

They were already in the balcony now, with only the three of them alone in a 10-meter vicinity. Zeus sat on the railings, while Hiro and Sianus contented themselves on leaning.

There was a moment of peace between the three friends.

“I knew the balls were rigged from the start,” Sianus said.

“Why didn’t you say anything then?” Zeus asked.

“Ignore him,” Hiro told her, gesturing her to continue.

“I observed a few movements, and from what I know, magical items aren’t just designed to go… random. Magical items are created with a purpose. So, I tried to figure out why they would control those balls, but I don’t have a clue,” Sianus finished explaining, fiddling with the little wine she had left.

“Maybe they wanted us to lose, earn a win for Day Class, not shame their prefects?” Zeus offered.

“Favoritism.” Hiro stated.

“Hmm…” Sianus stayed there thinking. It could be favoritism, but instinct told her it was more than that. To eliminate Zeus and Hiro, and leaving Yukiya and Elias…

 

The Ministry might just be proding on the extent of her magic. And she didn’t like digging up her past. Not one bit.


	6. Graduation Night: Ending

Auditorium, 2nd Floor

 

“The combination was easy, it only took several spells.”

When Klaus heard that voice, he was sipping on a glass of champagne, and it took most of his self-control to not choke on what he was drinking. Damn child, easy! It’s not known if it was intentional, but she had just offended most of his co-workers. 

Klaus shook his head, and slightly smiled. Only a person like her would have the guts to go against a century-old powerhouse. But he had to salute Sianus Taylors. The way she carried herself in the team battle was better than most people, not a move wasted, and each spell precise.

To think that she could actually crack the Ministry’s pride-worthy barrier in just a mere half an hour. Not even he himself could do that in such a short time. 

After the broadcasted voice hinted at the fact that the Circulating Ball was being controlled by a person - and from the Ministry, no less -, his father had stood up and walked over to where some of the higher-ups stayed in order to clarify things.

Klaus saw his brother coming over to where he was and nodded along. Elias looked dazed from the Team Battle, as if he hasn’t completely gotten over what happened yet.

“Brother.” Elias nodded to Klaus.

“Elias, you’ve improved quite a bit,” Klaus mentioned, taking two more glasses of champagne and handing one to Elias. “Drink,” he said.

Elias frowned and tried to refuse, “I don’t-”

“Just drink. Hate to be sentimental, but this would be your last and only graduation ball. Try to make some memories and loosen up.”

Elias thought over his brother’s words for a bit, and decide to follow his advice. He drank the champagne all in one gulp and ended up coughing.

“Prince, that is not how you drink champagne,” a voice made way to Elias’ ears, and made him blush like a tomato.

Klaus, after seeing Elias getting embarrassed, raised an eyebrow and looked over to the owner of the voice. “Luca Orlem.”

“Ah, the Emperor. Fancy meeting you here,” Luca grinned, although there were hints of nervousness in his voice.

“You’ve grown up.”

Elias interrupted the banter, by asking Klaus, “How do you even drink this thing? Or rather, how many glasses have you had?”

“Only a newbie like you would gulp it all down in one go. And for the record, I lost track after 9,” Klaus said, looking again at his glass which only had a little left. Deciding to get another and stronger one in the bar area, he excused himself and left, but not before warning Elias to not drink too much.

“Your brother seems to have… changed, a lot.” Luca told Elias, who heaved a sigh of relief after Klaus left.

“Hmm, he’s never been the same after the breakup,” Elias replied, truly feeling sorry for his brother.

Luca saw Elias’ eyes getting cloudy, and he discreetly touched Elias’ hands. 

“Let’s have fun,” Luca said.

Elias blushed once more, and nodded.

 

Sianus was at the bar area, drinking martinis and downing them shot by shot. Klaus saw the girl and slid to the seat beside her.

“Rum and coke,” he motioned to the waiter.

When Sianus saw him sit beside her, her heart started speedily beating. But she cooled herself down, and then remembered that he was from the Ministry.

“Tell your superiors I’m not some lab rat they’d like to play around with,” she said, gulping another martini and slamming the glass down on the counter.

“Easy there,” Klaus said, silently applauding the girl’s alcohol tolerance.

Sianus just shot a look at him and gestured to the bartender to get another refill, but Klaus put his hand on the bottle and said, “She has had enough.” The bartender left immediately, scared witless by Klaus’ dominating aura.

Sianus pouted and said, “No, I want another-- you hoe, who do you think you are?” She looked at Klaus suspiciously, her cheeks flushed as if she was just two shots away from being fully drunk.

Seeing her pout, the only thing that walked through Klaus' mind was how sexy she looked. But right after, he got startled by his thoughts and shook them off.

Shaking off how she addressed him, “You’re a few shots away from dropping dead,” he said.

“What’s it to you?” Sianus said, her arms crossed over her chest, showing a well-endowed figure that even Klaus could feel himself getting sexually frustrated.

“I believe it’s a Knight’s duty to-- What are you doing?” Klaus was about to give the worst explanation he ever had delivered in his whole lifetime, until he saw her grab his glass and drank it all.

Sianus started acting childishly, because of her huge lack of knowledge on how to act on situations like this. Her heart was pumping madly, and she couldn’t think as properly as she did an hour ago. Out of the blue, she reached for Klaus’ glass and gulped it, but the rum and coke had a higher alcohol content than the martini she was drinking that when she tried to stand up, she swayed and ended up trying to steady herself.

“Easy, easy there. I need to get you to your room. You stay in the apartment, right?” Klaus asked, putting an arm over the girl’s waist and holding her hand.

Sianus grunted a, “Hmm,” as an agreement. Her brain was foolishly screaming, "Red alert! Hottie touching waist! O. M. G!" so much that she couldn’t form a single coherent sentence.

 _Stupid girl_ , Klaus thought to himself, but surprisingly realized that he didn’t feel irritated. Step by step, he lead her to a shortcut from the second floor of the auditorium to the front of the building, where the cold wind of the night immediately sobered Sianus up.

“Damn, that’s cold,” the girl cussed, untangling her arms from Klaus to clasp both elbows in attempts to warm herself. 

Klaus saw the girl shivering, and he unbuttoned his jacket and slung it over her. It reached her mid-thighs, and that was when Klaus noticed how short the girl really was, which was at his neck-level, and that was with heels. 

He couldn’t help but remark, “You’re short.”

“Is it that obvious?” Sianus couldn’t help but snort.

“Sarcasm doesn’t look good on you.”

“And you don’t look good at all, but you don’t see me complaining.”

“You need to get your eyes checked.”

“Wow, didn’t expect the Emperor to be a narcissist.”

Klaus raised an eyebrow at her comment. “So, you know who I am?”

“Should’ve known at first sight really. You look a lot like your father and brother.”

By now, the two of them had started walking and were already at the entrance of the underground Night Class.

“When did you realize?”

“When I saw Elias. I remember seeing you in a picture he keeps in his wallet.”

“I did not expect my brother to have those.”

“Well, you’d be surprised. He’s a cinnamon roll, that one,” Sianus smiled at him, the wind tousling the tendrils of hair falling down from her face.

Klaus felt his heart speed up. Dangerously flirting, he asked, “Then what about me?”

“Hmm? Oh, you’re a sinnamon, with an s. You literally cause people to sin.”

That was not something he expected. Klaus remained dumbfounded and the girl hurriedly clarified, “Oh, I forgot you’re not up-to-date with these terms. Sinnamon rolls - the ones with s - are those people who look cute at first but are actually really hot and sexy and you could say, ‘fuck-able’.”

10 seconds passed but Klaus continued to stare at the girl who had just opened her door.

It took her 10 more seconds to say, “Wait, shit!” and Sianus whirled around and her jaw dropped. _Shit, shit, shit, a thousand times shit!_

“Fuck-able, you say?” Klaus smirked, throwing all his reservations of the window. He’s a man who had restrained himself for several months now, and there’s a sexy girl who he admits is feisty and he likes it and she's right in front of him. 

Sianus didn’t know where she got the confidence, but her eyes slitted and she said, “And if I did?”

“Girl, you don’t know where you’re going into,” Klaus leaned his face closer, their lips dangerously hovering the other’s.

“Then show me,” Sianus said, wrapping her arms around his neck and gently kissed him.

The gentleness of the kiss took Klaus by surprise, as if she was trying to melt away all his sadness and replace them with promises, but he shrugged it off and responded with rawer and rougher fervor. Her door opened and she pulled him into the room, quickly locking it. In the darkness of the night, Klaus looked at the girl’s eyes and asked.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”


	7. The Day After Graduation

In Sianus’ bedroom, 8 in the morning.

 

Sunlight streamed through the cracks of the curtains and into two naked bodies wrapped up in comforters and blankets. It didn’t exactly disturb the couple, quite the contrary. In fact, the sleep was the best Sianus had in years and she curled up more to the heat-warmer beside her. 

Wait, heat-warmer?

Before she opened her eyes, a dull pain in her head and… down there reminded her of her last night’s events… the team battle, the broadcast, Klaus…

Her eyes flew wide open.

_Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, shit!_

She was awarded with the sight of a broad chest, and although she’d very much like to stare, she turned her eyes upwards to meet violet orbs.

_Shit!_

“Wow, less than three seconds. I’m impressed. Normally, I would’ve asked, “Are you done staring?” by now,” Sianus was awarded with two eyes curved upwards and a man leaning his head on a hand.

Feeling brave, she countered, “Some actually last a night with you considering how bad you are?” Sianus smiled wickedly. 

“Don’t push it too far, shortie. I have to go,” Klaus let out a laugh, and threw the sheets off of him. He quickly put on his pants and was buttoning up his shirt when he heard Sianus let out a groan.

“It’s too early.”

“It’s already 8, what are you talking about?”

Klaus turned around and saw a head poking out at the layers of blankets on the bed. The girl looked so sleepy that even he felt bad.

When Sianus saw him about to wear his vest, she shook off her fort of pillows to reach for her Magic Tablet. Klaus didn’t know if it was intentional, but the view of her naked back was enough to send him… unsatisfied, which he knew was totally out of character.

“----send you?” 

Klaus shook off his thoughts, and said, “I’m sorry. Could you repeat that?”

“I asked where do you want me to send you.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s morning, and I’m sure you’re not ready to ruin your cold-blooded nobody’s-worthy-enough-to-sleep-with-me reputation just yet. So I was planning to teleport you, Sianus said, settling back into the sheets and waving her Magic Tablet at him.

Rolling his eyes at her smartass comment, he said, “Hmm, the courtyard, most probably. That’s the famous Magic Tablet?” Klaus looked at the thin notebook-sized object that Sianus carried in her hands. 

“Yup. I’m done setting the coordinates,” she said, and a blue magic circle appeared. “Hop on.”

Klaus hung his jacket over his arm and said, “Well then, I’ll be off.” He stepped at the center of the blue circle and disappeared.

“The name’s Sianus, by the way,” she shouted after him. 

“Not Liz,” she mumbled.

 

The feeling of being teleported was a familiar, yet unwelcome one. Klaus had to hold his breath steady for a minute until he was sure that he wouldn’t vomit. He looked around and realized that the spot Sianus teleported him to was a hidden one, but in the courtyard nonetheless. Steadying himself, he stalked off to go back to the Goldstein Manor.

It was a good night, he admits. He hadn’t slept that deeply for a long time. He made a mental note to apologize to the girl later. He really didn’t mean to yell out Liz’s name during their… session.

Just the thought of his ex-girlfriend made his emotions quiver and left him guilty.

 

Sianus sighed after she mumbled the name. It was probably because they were both influenced by alcohol a few hours ago that they jumped on each other. Her lower part felt a little sore, and she blushed furiously at the thought. Fine, it was her first, and it was wasted on a guy who - although damn well-endowed - called out his ex-girlfriend’s name.

Damn, her life.

She threw her Magic Tablet a few inches away from her and snuggled back to the covers. She could sleep off her tiredness and pained heart, she guesses.

 

2 in the afternoon.

 

“Wake up, sunshine!” Zeus burst open from the door and flung the covers off the bed.

“Dammit! My eyes! My virgin eyes!” He then yelled right after, waking Sianus up.

“You crazy twat. Get the fuck out! Out!” The girl shouted. She was awoken with a scream, and to top it off, someone who she didn’t sleep with (and isn’t planning to) saw her naked. 

The idiot went out of her room and muttered repeatedly, “I didn’t see anything, I didn’t see anything.”

Sianus sighed and took some clothes out of her drawer. After a few minutes, she opened the door with a glare.

“Are you dressed now?” Zeus said, still keeping a hand over his eyes. Hiro was just there, leaning on the wall, sighing at his friend’s stupidity. 

“Sorry about that,” Hiro said.

“Nah, Hiro, you’re cute. If you found me in that position, you would’ve let me sleep more. But this dipstick,” she pinched Zeus’ ears, “screamed and woke me up!”

“Hey, get off!” Zeus said, prying the girl’s hand off his ears. 

“Wait, so you’re not mad that I saw you naked?” He said, but earned a glare from one person and another rolled his eyes at him.

“I’m erasing that shit from your memory next time you blubber it out,” Sianus said.

She had dressed in a gray half-sleeved turtleneck shirt and simple black pants, which showed off her figure, earning stares from the boys of the co-ed dorm. But Zeus shot them a look, which made them scram away with their tails tucked in.

“Why’d you wake me up anyway?” Sianus asked. She saw Hiro and Zeus dressed up in casual clothes, so she figured they were going somewhere.

“Nothin’,” Zeus said with a faint red in his cheeks but couldn’t really be seen since he had dark skin.

Hiro rolled his eyes and said, “The Night Class wanted to throw an exclusive after-graduation party and they invited us to come.”

“Oh? Then what are we waiting for?” Sianus smiled. She excused herself for a minute to get ready, and got out of her room. She emerged a few minutes later.

“So, where’s the party?” she asked.

“The Night Cafe,” Hiro replied.

“Nice.”

There was a moment of silence among the three of them and awkwardness hung in the air. They didn’t know what to speak about, knowing that they had spent five years with each other and we’re about to separate.

“So, what are your plans?” Sianus asked.

“Can we not talk about it?” Zeus said, a little angry.

Sianus smiled slightly, and said, “You can’t keep delaying it, you know.”

Zeus grumbled.

Hiro sighed and filled her in, “We’re planning to go back to the Kingdom. His father’s already sent four letters, seeking our return.”

“Oh. Well, that’s to be expected. When are you guys leaving?” Sianus asked.

“Are you that eager for us to leave?” Zeus asked, getting angrier by the minute. 

Sianus noticed his attitude, tiptoed, and flicked him hard in the forehead, earning an exclamation from the man-boy.

“I just wanted to know how much time we have left together,” she sighed.

“A week, at most.”

“Wow.” Sianus paused, “That’s sad.”

Hiro nodded along.

“I guess we should make the best of it then,” she smiled at the two men. Hiro and Zeus looked at each other, and smiled back at her.

There was a pause, and Zeus asked, “What are your plans?”

“Me?”

“Of course you, dumb twat.”

“Rude,” Sianus laughed, glad to have the atmosphere back to normal. “I’ve applied in the Ministry, and also on other countries. Still waiting for replies, though.”

“You want to go work at the Ministry?” Zeus raised his eyebrows questioningly.

“Of course, not. I was thinking that since most replies from other countries usually take up to one and a half years, I’d need to do something productive and would look good in my work experience,” Sianus winks, finger-gunning the two men.

“If you wanted work experience, you could’ve come with us back home,” Hiro said right away.

“Yeah, exactly. My family’s--”

“Hiro, Zoey, stop,” Sianus butted him. “Stop it. I guess this talk is long overdue, and the three of us have been avoiding it, but don’t you think we should go with our own paths?”

Zeus and Hiro stopped in their tracks, their backs just two steps away from her.

“...”

“...”

“Fine, fine. You boys come from the same country, heck same family even. My point is, I’m not sure if you guys noticed, but I’m way different from both of you. When you leave this academy, you have a path laid out in front of you as… whatever your fathers were. Me? I still have to figure out that part. But there is something I do know, and that is I want out. Out this place, out this country, into somewhere that the people in this academy and from my childhood won’t reach me. 

“I wanna go outside and make a name for myself. Start out as a nobody and work my way up the social and corporate ladder. Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to go with you guys to Queensblade, but in the future, when I’m all famous and cool.”

Sianus approached them and slapped their backs. The two men just looked at each other. Zeus turned away and grumbled something. Hiro just let out a sigh and smiled. Sianus knew that from the reactions of her two partners, they already understood.

Knowingly, she smiled and half jumped in excitement, “Quickly, they’ll start the party without us!” and ran to the Night Cafe that was just at the end of the hall.

Zeus walked over to Hiro and asked, “Hey, she didn’t hear it right?”

Hiro answered, “That you think she was already cool? I could hear it and I was farther from you than her. Besides, that girl has bat-ears.”

The two snickered until they heard a voice, “Wow, Hiro. Can’t you shout it any louder? I couldn’t hear that.”

Sianus, who was clearly seven meters away from them, drawled on. The two men immediately got scared, but in a fun way.

And just like that, everything had gone back to the way it used to before.


End file.
